Lot 110: A carved and gilt ivory relief

Serge Yourevich (1876-1969)
A carved and gilt ivory relief
The curved section of tusk carved in high relief with a female dancer, with gilt armlets, skirt and hair, the gilt background of spirals and waves, mounted on a rectangular marble socle, incised signature 'S. Yourevitch' (lower right)
10¾ in. (27.3 cm.) high

In 1903 Serge Yourevich met August Rodin who encouraged the young sculptor's passion for sculpture. By 1909, Yourevich exhibited regularly at the Salon des Independants, Salon d' Automne and Salon des Tuilleries in Paris. At the beginning of the First World War Yourevich returned to Russia, serving as an officer before eventually settling in Paris permanently in 1918.

Yourevich is primarily known for his realistic depictions of personalities including Queen Marie of Romania and Franklin D. Roosevelt (1930), in plaster and bronze. In 1927 he visited Egypt and executed a series of sculptures of African girls and fellaheens.